A Leisurely Stroll Through the SF Botanical Garden in Golden Gate Park - Gardenista
Photographs by Michelle Slatalla except where noted. The question that occurred to me the other day, as I was huffing and puffing my way up one of the steep switchback trails that crisscross the mountain in my town, was this: Why must a hike be so onerous? And suddenly the stress started to melt away. By the time we reached the Arthur L. Menzies Garden of California Native Plants, we’d passed the “please-touch” collection of scented plants (where visitors can rub leaves between two fingers to release the scent of various herbs) and stopped to admire 100-year-old rhododendrons with trunks as thick as trees. Throughout the California natives garden, naturalized clumps of irises edge walkways and cover grassy meadows. The only problem, says Mr. Mahoney, is that the wildflowers can be irresistible. A California native, Rhododendron Occidentale (L), has huge powder puff blossoms. Photograph by Sftrajan via Flickr. Native to southern Oregon and Northern California, Rhododendron Occidentale is $10 per plant from Far Reaches Farm. A California buckeye tree, Aesculus californica, has plenty of space to grow to its full size; it looks ancient and gnarly. Photograph by Sftrajan via Flickr. A small plaque in the grassy area beneath the buckeye identifies it for passersby. Known as the California lilac, ceanothus comes in about 50 different varieties; it has a lovely fragrance that always reminds me of a cake baking. A low-growing variety, Ceanothus Hearstiorum creates a mat-like groundcover; a plant in a 1-gallon pot is $12 from Bay Natives. A semi-secluded bench named in honor of Gavin Newsom’s mother Tessa; sometimes the lieutenant governor stops by for a visit and quiet contemplation. Fragrant lilacs developed to thrive in San Francisco’s mild climate are known as “low-chill” varieties. The oldest low-chill Syringa vulgaris is ‘Lavender Lady,’ developed in California 30 years ago by hybridizer Walter Lammerts. For a downloadable walking map that identifies highlights of the California natives garden, see SF Botanical Garden. The botanical garden is preparing for its annual public plant sale–which will be the first weekend in May–and so Mr. Mahoney eventually had to head back to a meeting at the nursery. By the time I reached my car, the time had run out on the parking meter.